Snow fence



1;. w. LOFTUS snow FENCE 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Jan. 13, 1940 Patented Oct. 28, 1941 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE SNOW FENCE Daniel Webster Loftus, Perry, Iowa Application January 13, 1940, Serial No. 313,716

3 Claims.

Snow is carried by the wind close to the surface of the groundand is deposited in railway and other road cuts on account of the eddies which they cause in the wind. The function of the snow fence is to form artificial eddies on the windward side of the cut at sufficient distance to deposit the snow between the snow fence and the cut.

Open slat fencing should be spaced from the surface of the ground, and consequently it becomes necessary to raise such a fence after a snow fall has reduced or filled in the space above the ground. Heretofore, fencing has been fastened to the intermediate posts by wrapping two turns of Wire about each strand and the adjacent post and twisting the ends together, a rather laborious task; and, to raise such a fence, the wires had to be cut, the fencing lifted, and new fastening wires put on.

' The principal object of this invention is to reduce the labor both in erecting the fence and in raising it. This is accomplished by making the ends of each warp strand fast to the end posts and fastening the fencing to the intermediate posts with a fastener having oppositely turned hooks, one to hang on the post and the other to grasp a selected warp strand-a higher one when erecting the fence and a lower one when raising it. s

Further objects and advantages of the invention will be revealed as the disclosure proceeds and the description is read in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is an elevation of a section of fence embodying the invention as it is erected;

Fig. 2 is a similar view showing such a fence raised ten inches;

Fig. 3 is a vertical section through the upper end of one of the intermediate posts showing the fastener and the adjacent piece of fencing;

Fig. 4 is a perspective view of the fastener;

Fig. 5 is a section similar to Fig. 3 with a slightly modified form of fastener and post;

Fig. 6 is a plan view of the same;

Fig. 7 is a section similar to Figs. 3 and 5 of a fence including a T-shaped post; and

Fig. 8 is a plan view of the same.

But these specific drawings and the corresponding description are used for the purpose of disclosure only and are not intended to impose unnecessary limitations on the claims, which should cover various modifications of which the invention is susceptible.

In Fig. 1, there is shown a familiar form of fencing, including a number of warp strands of wire spaced apart vertically and interwoven with woof slats ll spaced apart so as to make the fence about half open.

Theleft end of the fence is indicated by a wooden post l2, and two intermediate'postsl3 are shown in succession to the right.

Fencing like that shown is often made in sections 25 feet long, and one or a plurality are used in making a snow fence, depending on the length it has to have. When two sections are used, the adjacent ends are made fast at one of the intermediate posts. The remote ends are made fast to end posts braced or guyed in any suitable manner to enable them to stand the strain of the Wind and the weightof the fence.

In this illustration, the left end of the fencing is secured to the end post I2 by being snubbed about it and having each warp strand [0 made fast by a number of staples I4. Guys and braces have been omitted'to clarify the illustration. The opposite end of the fence, no matter how many sections, would be made to correspond.

The fencing is secured to the intermediate post l3 by fasteners l5 shownmore clearly in Figs. 3, 4, 5, and 7. In Fig. 4, it" will be clear that the fastener is made from a piece of strip steel (one inch in width is sufficient) with a rounded hook 16 at the bottom to receive and support the warp strand Ill and an angular hook I! at the top to engage and be supported by the upper end of the post l3.

In snow fences for steam railroads, the posts are often made from used two-inch boiler flue, such as illustrated in Fig. 3, eight feet long and set two feet in the ground, spaced sixteen feet and eight inches on centers. When driven with a sledge, the upper end of such a post is often upset or bulged, as indicated at l8 in Fig. 3. In such a case, it is desirable to have the width of the hook I! great enough to pass readily over the bulged upper end of the post. The forms that will be taken are too numerous to attempt to illustrate.

When a boiler flue post is driven with a proper post driver, it preserves a form substantially shown in Fig. 5. For that reason, it is preferable to give the upper hook I! a sort of reverse curve l9, as shown in Fig. 5, to make the lower portions 20 clasp in the side of the post and hold the upper portion of the hook against the outer face of the post, as shown in the figure.

When flues are not available, posts of T-shape 2| (Fig. 7) are often used. They comprise a web portion 22 and a head flange or flanges 23. The same sort of hook as shown in Figs. 3 and 5 can be made to serve with T-shaped posts by splitting them as indicated in Fig. 4 at 24, whereby forks 25 are formed to reach over the flanges 23 and straddle the web 22 of the T post.

Many will prefer to make the hooks in such a shape that they may serve with the three posts shown and many others, in which case a form substantially as shown in Fig. 5, but with forked arms, will be found suitable.

When erected as indicated, the snow fence will appear substantially as shown in Fig. 1, with the lower ends of the slats approximately sixteen inches above the bare ground.

When considerable snow has fallenfor example, sufficient to lay twelve inches deep beneath the fenceit should be raised if the eddies are to be properly formed. That is quickly accomplished with the present construction by merely lifting the intermediate portion of the fence. The fastener i5 is unhooked from the post and the top warp strand l0, engaged with the next lower strand, raised and hooked onto the post again. The strain will be easier if the fasteners are first moved at the middle, or near the middle, and then towards the ends. The fence will then present an appearance somewhat like that shown in Fig. 2.

From this it will appear that the labor in erecting the fence is very much reduced by the ease with which the intermediate portions are made fast to the intermediate posts and that the fence can be raised almost as rapidly as men can walk along it.

Some will prefer to have alternate posts on opposite sides of the fencing to make sure that the fence will not bag too much in the Wind. For instance, the right post in Fig. 1 may be put on the near side of the fence, the next one on the opposite side, and so on. This and many other modifications will merely extend the application of the invention and are intended to be covered by the following claims.

I claim:

1. In a snow fence comprising intermediate posts and fencing mounted thereon for ready elevational adjustment, the combination of warp strands and woof slats comprising the fencing,

smooth surfaced open topped pipe sections comprising said posts, and fastening means securing the fencing to the posts consisting of a single unitary element having an upper hook hanging in the open top of each pipe section and an upwardly facing lower hook, one strand of the fencing being seated in each lower hook and the strands below it being juxtaposed to said smooth surfaces of the posts and a pair of slats of the fencing straddling each post and by their weight tending to stabilize the seating relation of the strands in the lower hooks.

2. In a snow fence comprising intermediate posts each having a continuous smooth outer surface and fencing mounted thereon for ready elevational adjustment, the combination of warp strands and woof slats comprising the fencing, and fastening means securing the fencing to said surfaces of the posts consisting of a plurality of unitary elements, one for each post, each having an upper hook hanging the element on a post with parts of said hook and post arranged in horizontal straddling relation to prevent disconnection by horizontal, displacement and having an upwardly facing lower hook, a strand of the fencing being seated in each lower hook and a pair of slats of the fencing straddling each post and by their weight tending to stabilize the seating relation of the strands in the lower hooks.

3. In a snow fence comprising intermediate posts and fencing mounted thereon for ready elevational adjustment, the combination of warp strands and woof slats comprising the fencing, posts of T-shape in cross section, and fastening means securing the fencing to the posts consisting of a plurality of unitary eelments each having an upper hook hanging the element on a post with a slot in the hook receiving the web of the post to prevent disconnection by horizontal displacement and having an upwardly facing lower hook, a strand of the fencing being seated in each lower hook and a pair of slats of the fencing straddling each post and by their weight tending to stabilize the seating relation of the strands in the lower hooks.

DANIEL WEBSTER LOFI'US. 

